Guest Blog: Scott M. Petri, Ed.D.

A Ross Douthat editorial in the NY Times entitled Is The World Ready for a Religious Comeback? posits that the decline of religious practice is increasingly seen as a social problem. He then cites a study that investigates the demise of the “Nones” — Americans with no religious affiliation — whose numbers are declining. Lastly, he questions whether disillusionment with atheism is leading people back to organized religions. It’s a fascinating public debate that should be taking place in our public K-12 schools. However, my recent experiences facilitating civic discourse workshops across the country have shown me that teachers are more reticent than ever to spend significant instruction time on religion, much less devote any classroom discussion on the subject. 

Supported or Discouraged?

The American Academy of Religion (AAR) found that religion permeates state standards across the K–12 continuum, especially in English and social studies classes. Unfortunately, few educators have been trained in the religious studies methods required to teach this content responsibly. If you ask your school principal how much professional development they have given their teachers on this topic, I bet you will get a half-hearted smile and some weak excuses. Luckily, the AAR has published guidelines for teaching about religion that offer teachers substantial advice. The National Council for the Social Studies has endorsed this framework while also affirming that religious studies is an essential part of the curriculum.

Many organizations also offer high-quality resources for teaching about religion. For example, the First Amendment Center offers an excellent Teacher’s Guide to Religion in Public Schools. Georgetown University has a web page that lists resources for teaching about world religions. In my home state, the California Teachers Association has a primer on teaching about religion, and Interfaith America offers Why is it Important to Teach Religion in Elementary and Middle Schools? The problem is that not every teacher has the time to look into these resources and then develop high-quality classroom content.

In addition, while many agree that teaching religious liberty is an important part of social studies instruction, there is now concern that some states may have gone too far. EdWeek reported on three states pushing constitutional boundaries by mandating teaching the bible as a historical text, empowering public schools to hire religious chaplains, and requiring schools to display religious texts. Have these maneuvers made teachers unduly nervous about teaching religion in the public school setting? Do you think these developments are increasing or decreasing teacher anxiety as they make individual choices in how to interpret their state standards on the teaching of religion? 

Bill of Rights Institute

To help educators incorporate religion-related content responsibly, The Bill of Rights Institute (BRI) offers a collection of eight lessons called Religious Liberty: An American Experiment. The unit helps users trace the teaching of religion from our country’s colonial past to our contentious present. Classroom activities include conducting primary source analysis, assessing arguments, comparing and contrasting models of religious liberty, debating the legitimate reach of government, reviewing landmark Supreme Court cases, and examining the uniquely American evolution from religious toleration to religious liberty.  

And most importantly for the religiously uneducated like me — each lesson contains answer keys!

Too often teachers are forced to walk a tightrope where they are expected to know the critical differences between teaching religion and teaching about religion. The Anti-Defamation League offers some guidance here, but how many new teachers have time to read it when they are working on lesson plans at 11pm the night before they deliver the lesson? 

The BRI curriculum intentionally follows the thinking of our Founders in order to prevent teachers from being criticized for their instructional choices. Grounded in the study of our Constitution, the BRI lessons offer teachers additional insulation while also helping them stay aligned with their state standards. By keeping the focus on the Founding Era, both teachers and students are free to explore the topic — pondering whether or not religious liberty is an ongoing experiment — without fear of pushback or retribution. This paves the way for more difficult questions like whether or not the Constitution protects religious freedoms. Since ensuing discussions focus on legal principles, students are not debating the merits of one religion over another.

Even then, interesting issues occasionally arise. One participant in a workshop asked a very insightful question about Washington’s Letter to the Hebrew Congregation in Newport Rhode Island, a resource we included in the lesson “From Toleration to Liberty.” Washington wrote numerous letters to various religious denominations. The workshop participant wondered if teachers who omit other religious traditions might be leaving themselves open to criticism about bias. This comment has haunted me because there is clearly not enough time in the school year to learn about every religion. Yet, teaching nothing about religion does not serve our students well. So what is the answer? Should individual states have the authority to pick which religious traditions the students need to learn about? What happens when twenty-five out of thirty students opt out of religious instruction because of parent objections? 

Conclusion

According to Pew Research, approximately one in five countries, or twenty-two percent of the world, mandates a single religion for their citizens. These BRI lessons show students that America’s devotion to pluralism has allowed us to become a model of religious freedom for other nations. Perhaps this non-devotional, constitutionally-based approach is a more palatable way to approach religious instruction. It might also be an easier way to incorporate religion into the classroom instead of training three million public school teachers to appropriately teach about individual religions. (For additional thoughts on this issue, see the 2019 Pew Research Update on Religion in Public Schools.)

As a child raised by two atheists, I remember Sunday being the loneliest day of the week because all my friends were at church and I was home alone. I have helped raise two children to respect and participate in their mother’s faith. When they complain about having to go to services, I remind them “If it’s important to Mommy, it’s important to you!” Even if some of us are more devout than others, participating in a community of worship has made us a stronger family. If teaching about faith supports religious diversity, increases empathy, and generates compassion, then perhaps we should be doing more of it.

About the Author

Scott Petri taught social studies at the middle and high school level for more than 20 years. He holds a Doctorate in Educational Leadership and a Masters in Educational Administration from California State University Northridge, as well as a B.A. in Political Science from the University of San Diego. Dr. Petri was named Outstanding High School Social Studies Teacher of the Year by the California Council for the Social Studies in 2021. He is also a co-author of The EduProtocols Field Guide: Social Studies Edition (Dave Burgess Consulting, Inc., 2022), a past President of the Southern California Social Studies Association, and a 2023-24 PBS Invention Ed Fellow. He currently supports Civic and US History teachers nationally as the Manager of Program Partnerships for The Bill of Rights Institute.